


Underrated Heartbreak

by snapchattingnct



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: 7 dream, 7 dreamies finally together again, Alternate Universe - College/University, Attempt at Humor, Childhood Friends, Friendship, Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, Slice of Life, like im sure it's not that funny but i tried, markhyuck focus, side nomin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:00:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26166037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snapchattingnct/pseuds/snapchattingnct
Summary: Mark doesn’t quite understand why no one really wrote or sang about the loss of a friend, the jarring, slow heartbreak that came with it. Everyone talked about romantic love, how painful the heartbreak was from losing a lover. But the heartbreak that came with losing a friend, especially a bunch of them, hurt like hell too.(or where Mark misses the rest of the dreamies, who are all scattered across the country, so he goes on a spontaneous road trip to visit them all.)“It’s sad, but that’s just life. Life is full of hellos and equally full of goodbyes.”
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Comments: 15
Kudos: 141





	Underrated Heartbreak

**Author's Note:**

> Happy 4th Anniversary to my precious dreamies!  
> I originally didn't plan on posting anything, but I decided why the hell not, right?  
> A little late but here's the 7dream fic that I've always been meaning to write but never got around to writing. 
> 
> It's a little emotional and might hit you in the heart, so prepare your tissues peeps~ I kind of self-projected at lot in this piece too... I recently moved away for grad school so you know... deep in my feels on the daily haha
> 
> Thank you for Isis for betaing as always~ 
> 
> Enjoy~

Mark couldn’t sleep, but that wasn’t something that was new. He had always been a little bit of an insomniac; never being able to go to sleep at a normal time. When he would finally get around to falling asleep, the early morning rays were already peeking through the purple clouds. 

The dull ache blooming in his chest though, now, that was new. 

He laid in bed, it was almost one, and he really should be asleep, but he wasn’t. Mark stared at the plain, white ceiling, listening to the hoots and hollers of the people living in the floor above him. They were still partying the night away despite it being a weekday. 

He could remember the days that he was carefree like that, conquering the world without any worries. Late night drives to the twenty four hour ice cream parlor on the corner of their street or spontaneous road trips with no particular destinations in mind. The songs that would blast through the car’s stereo, sometimes the bass too loud and heavy. Other times, soft ballads that made them reminisce.

He missed it. 

Mark missed the warm feeling of being around the friends that he had built an entire childhood with. He missed all the laughs and jokes they shared. They probably weren't as funny as he thought they were, but they made him smile regardless, the others too. He missed all the talks they had, sharing their deepest fears, their struggles, big and small, and simply knowing that he wasn’t alone in the world. To know that he had six other shoulders to lean on, whether it was to laugh or to cry on, they would always be there for him, and he would be there for them. 

Mark wasn’t quite sure when it started, when their  _ ‘hellos’  _ occurred a little less and their  _ ‘goodbyes’  _ became a little more permanent. Thinking back about it though, Mark figured that it must have begun since graduation from high school. He was the first to graduate, the first to leave their little town, the first to head out for a new city. 

College was fun, Mark loved it. He discovered so many new things about himself, like the sudden realization that he liked English classes a lot more than his science ones, despite being on a pre-med track. He met a ton of new people, connected with them, built lasting friendships with them. He couldn’t help but smile when he thought back to the first day that he met Johnny on campus. 

But college was also hard— it was so hard. 

Endless deadlines and projects thrown in his direction every other minute. Obligations and responsibilities flooding him on the daily, where he would skip meals and sleep to get things done. Exams after exams, suffocating him until he could barely breathe. It was in those times that he wished that he had a shoulder to lean on to— to cry on. 

Donghyuck came across his mind first. 

His heart stopped aching for a second at the thought of Donghyuck, filling the empty void with nothing but warmth and love. Just the mere thought of his  _ sunshine _ lifted his mood up instantly. Mark thought about his boyfriend’s cheeky smiles and melodic laughs. He loved the way Donghyuck was able to cheer him up no matter what. 

He missed all the home-cooked meals that Donghyuck would always prepare for him too. Donghyuck had an uncanny ability to figure out what he wanted to eat on the daily. He never needed to even ask before Donghyuck was already running around in the kitchen, putting together something warm and hearty for them to eat. 

He missed Donghyuck’s kimchi jjigae the most.  _ God,  _ he hadn't had a nice, warm meal like that since forever. Cereal and milk with the occasional ramen was practically his diet recently. 

Burying his face deep into his pillow, Mark clutched at the cold blankets, wishing that Donghyuck was right beside him right now. The daily  _ ‘good morning’  _ and  _ ‘goodnight’  _ texts weren't enough, nor were the hours upon hours long phone calls. 

Donghyuck was close, but truthfully, not close enough. 

Feeling the burn behind his eyes and the way his throat constricted, Mark shoved his comforter off of his body. Body moving before he could even talk himself out of it, he searched the floor for the hoodie that he had carelessly tossed away earlier. Then he dug around for his socks. 

Mark fumbled with his phone, fingers flying across the keyboard to shoot Johnny a quick, desperate text,  _ ‘Hope you’re not using your SUV today because I’m taking it.’  _

The reply he got back was almost instant. Mark was surprised that he was even still awake.  _ ‘Don’t know why you need it man, but go for it. All yours. Drive safe!’  _

He swiped the keys to Johnny’s car off of the hooks before he stepped into his shoes, not even bothering to lace them up properly before he was out the door. 

.

Four hours, half a tank of gas, and a couple of red bulls later, Mark found himself standing in front of Donghyuck’s apartment door. 

Before he could talk himself out of it even more, Mark rasped his knuckles against the door. He took a peek at the numbers reflecting back at him from his phone and winced, it was almost five. Donghyuck was not going to be happy that he was knocking on his door at an hour like this. 

Surprisingly, he heard the door unlock not more than a few minutes later, as if Donghyuck was still awake. His heart clenched at the idea that Donghyuck was still up and not sleeping as he should be. 

The door swung open and a messy-haired Donghyuck was staring back at him. At first, the boy didn’t really recognize him, vision still blurry and hazy, probably from studying so late. Once his amber eyes cleared up though, light shining in them, and a bright smile gracing his lips, Donghyuck all but launched himself at him, “Mark? Oh my fucking gosh. What the hell are you doing here?”

Mark allowed himself to snuggle deep into the little junction between Donghyuck’s neck, breathing him in. He relished in how he felt more at home in Donghyuck’s arms than anywhere else, not even his true home a couple hundred miles away. 

The burn was there in his chest, but Mark tried his best to keep his tears at bay. Not to mention, if there was going to be any crying being done, Donghyuck would surely cry enough for the both of them. Donghyuck was a tad bit dramatic like that, but he found it so endearing. 

His heart was a complete mushy mess as he felt Donghyuck pepper his face with a thousand kisses as small giggles slipped in between each one of them. 

When Donghyuck finally felt like he had smothered him with enough love, he leant back, whispering, “You have no idea how much I’ve  _ missed _ you.” 

“I’ve missed you too, baby.” Mark wrapped his arms around Donghyuck a little tighter, pressing him into his arms a little deeper. Planting a soft kiss to the top of Donghyuck’s brown curls, he added, “More than you could possibly imagine.” 

“Trust me, I think I know,” Donghyuck laughed. Then tugging on his arms, Donghyuck pulled the both of them inside. 

The moment the door closed behind him, Donghyuck became a mumbling mess and started to practically run around the entire apartment. “Sorry, I wasn’t really expecting anyone to visit…” He was picking up random pieces of clothes left and right, trying to make his place a little tidier. “Had I known that you were going to come, I wouldn’t have pushed off laundry until today.” 

Mark tried to tell him that it was okay, but Donghyuck was already in the kitchen, opening and closing a bunch of cabinets as he said, “Are you hungry? You must be. You’ve probably been living off of nothing but frosted corn flakes. I made some kimchi jjigae earlier, I can heat it up really quick. It won’t take too long.” 

He smiled. Of course, the first thing that Donghyuck was worried about was feeding him. 

Shaking his head, Mark reached out for his frantic boyfriend and tugged him back into his arms. Tucking Donghyuck’s head under his chin, he said, “You worry too much.” 

“How can I not?” Donghyuck replied back, not missing a beat. Squirming in his hold, Donghyuck looked at him, “You’re so  _ far  _ away and I’m not there to take care of you, like I normally do… it makes me worried, okay?”

“Well, I am here.” Mark told him, running a gentle hair through Donghyuck’s messy locks. Kissing him softly on the lips, he mumbled, “So don’t worry that pretty little head of yours.” 

At his words, Donghyuck all but melted in his arms. They stayed like that for a while, hugging each other in the middle of the kitchen, simply basking in each other’s warmth. His heart was finally at ease, beating in complete sync with Donghyuck’s, slow yet steady. It was so much easier to breathe now, especially with the way Donghyuck was breathing out warm puffs of air against his neck, heating his entire body up. 

As he continued to card his fingers through Donghyuck’s hair, Mark began, “I love hugging you and all, but that isn’t the real reason why I’m here today…” 

“Then what is it?” 

“I couldn’t sleep, which is normal, but it also got me thinking…” 

“Yeah, what about?” Donghyuck pushed him to continue.

“You and the rest of the boys,” he whispered, heart beginning to ache a little. Licking his lips, he pressed on, “How much has changed as we move through life.”

Donghyuck was always the one that could read him like an open book. He could hear everything that he meant and wanted to say without having to actually say it. Sometimes, Mark felt like Donghyuck knew him better than he knew himself. 

“You miss them a lot, don’t you?”

“Yeah… I do.” 

“It kind of just sneaks up on you, doesn’t it?” Donghyuck gave out a soft laugh, one that sounded a little sad around the edges. “Like you go about your daily life like normal and it just hits you. No warning or anything, the realization just hits you.” 

Mark nodded, humming along. 

“We’re still great friends and all, but it’s not the same, you know?” Donghyuck continued on. “There’s nothing really all that dramatic about it. Just one day, you realize that you’re not as close as you once were with the people you called your friends— your family.” 

“People tell you all about the pain of a heartbreak that comes with losing a lover,” Mark started to say, throat growing dry as he thought about the favorite people in his life, “but no one tells you about the heartbreak that comes with losing a friend, or a bunch of them.” 

“It’s sad, but that’s just life. Life is full of hellos and equally full of goodbyes.” 

“Yeah, it is,” Mark mumbled out. 

As he stared out the window of Donghyuck’s apartment, catching the way the sky was already turning a soft orange, he tightened his hold around Donghyuck’s body. 

“But let’s change that. How do you feel about a mini road trip?” 

.

“This is anything but a  _ mini  _ road trip.” Donghyuck’s laugh was loud as he stuck his hand out the window, feeling the morning breeze slip through his fingers. 

“It’s really not.” Mark laughed along with him, fingers drumming against the steering wheel to the beat of the song playing through the stereo. 

The longer they drove and the more songs they finished singing along to, Mark couldn’t help but think about how  _ fucking  _ crazy all of this was. It was a Friday morning and he should be getting ready for his immunology lecture right now, not driving half way across the country with the love of his life. 

He hadn’t felt this free in so long. The air was suddenly a little easier to breathe, the heavy feeling in his chest was gone, and his heart completely full. 

Mark reached across the console to slip his fingers through Donghyuck’s, bringing their clasped hands up to his lips. “Thanks for coming with me.” 

“Like I was going to let you go on this crazy adventure alone.” Donghyuck teased. “Anything fun and crazy, you know I’m game.” 

“Trust me, I know.” Mark smiled. 

“So, who’s our first victim? Which one of our babies are we snatching up first?” Donghyuck asked him, eyes shining brightly, full of mischief. “Renjun?” 

.

Donghyuck was practically vibrating in his shoes. Mark had to throw an arm around his shoulders to stop him from bouncing around the front of Renjun’s class. Donghyuck was a complete chatterbox, talking about anything and everything, filling him in on things that he missed out on. 

Donghyuck waved his hands around animatedly as he continued to tell him about how  _ annoying  _ his recent group project was. He was so into the story that he nearly smacked him across the face. Lucky for him, Mark had some quick reflexes, or else there would have been a huge, red handprint on his face. 

Shoulders shaking with laughter, Mark caught hold of his waving hands. Holding them, Mark leaned close to kiss him on the lips, hoping that it would calm Donghyuck’s nerves. “You need to calm down, baby. You’re going to get burnout before the trip even actually starts at this rate.” 

“Nah, I have more than enough energy for the both of us.” Donghyuck smiled cheekily up at him.

Mark doesn’t think that he would ever get over how beautiful Donghyuck was. He loved the way Donghyuck’s cheeks were dusted a light pink, a little out of breath from all the talking that he had done. His brown eyes were like pools of honey, melting in the rays of the sun, so warm and soft. Donghyuck was looking at him like he hung the moon and stars. He was so close that Mark could see his own reflection in those bright eyes. 

He had half the mind to kiss Donghyuck absolutely senseless right then and there, but Donghyuck had already turned around, no longer facing towards him. 

Instead, he had his hands raised up high, waving them excitedly as he shouted out, “Hey, loser, over there!” 

His cheeks burned at the attention that Donghyuck managed to gather from his loudness. Mark scrambled after Donghyuck, attempting to keep his boyfriend from making any more of a scene on a campus that wasn’t theirs. 

But it seemed like it was pointless because Renjun hollered right back, “Who are you calling loser, you shithead?” 

Mark was mortified by all the weird stares that they got. Some of the other students around them were even pointing fingers and whispering behind their hands. 

Yanking Donghyuck back into his arms, he hissed at the two boys, “Can you guys keep it on the low? Everyone is  _ staring. _ ”

“Okay, and?” Donghyuck asked. “Let them stare.”

“Yeah, let them stare.” Renjun nodded as he came closer, before adding on rather loudly, “They’re just  _ jealous _ that they don’t have what we have.” 

Mark really wanted the ground to swallow him whole. They were so _ embarrassing.  _

The longer he stared at the two though, the more full his heart became. Even though it had only been a couple of minutes since Renjun had joined them, he and Donghyuck were already bickering up a storm. They were spitting witty insults at one another left and right, just like old times. 

Smiling, Mark slung his arms around the both of them and placed them into a mini headlock, effectively shutting them both up. “Alright, come on you two, onto the next stop. You can continue your battle of insults in the car.” 

.

They found Jeno and Jaemin lounging out on the university’s lawn on a light blue blanket. Jeno had his nose deep in some textbook, studying like the good student he was while Jaemin was fast asleep on his shoulders. Mark wasn’t surprised to catch them like that. Jeno was always the more studious one out of the two. 

Jeno was also the first one to see them. 

Mark laughed at the way his mouth dropped wide open, his glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose. After the shock passed, Jeno’s eyes slowly turned into tiny half-moon crescents. Then the next thing he knew, Jeno was running towards him full speed. 

Mark tried to avoid his bone-crushing hug, but it was pointless, he should have known. Feeling the air being knocked out of his lungs, he wheezed out, “ _ Dude _ , that fucking hurts.” 

“I love you too, man.” Jeno laughed, squeezing his arms even tighter, until his elbows were digging painfully into his ribs. 

He struggled against Jeno’s hold, trying to get out of it, but Jeno held on firmly. Throwing a pained look over to Donghyuck, he begged his boyfriend to save him. But all that he got in return was a tight-lipped smile from Donghyuck and a small shrug. 

Mark cursed his luck. 

From where Jaemin was still sprawled out on the blanket, he shouted, “Lee Jeno! I can not believe you shoved me off like that! I was taking a nap, you asshole!” 

“I don’t care!” Jeno yelled back at him. “Mark is here and he’s way more important than your beauty sleep.” 

“ _ What?”  _ Jaemin’s exclamation was so loud that it echoed across the entire lawn. He swore that he saw some birds fly out from a nearby tree in fear out of the corner of his eye. 

His friends were such a loud and rowdy bunch. Mark really didn’t know how he ended up with them, because he was anything but loud. Although, in the past decade that he had known them, they’ve definitely pulled him out of his shell. It wasn’t all that surprising when he would catch himself laughing as boisterous as they did. After spending so much time around them, he figured that he would catch onto their antics.

“What has uni been feeding you guys?” Mark groaned at the sudden added weight of Jaemin’s body on him as the boy joined in the hugging fest. Once Jaemin joined in, it didn’t take long for Donghyuck and Renjun to join in too. “You guys are literally elephants.” 

“You’re just weak.” Renjun commented, before even going as far as pinching the skin above his biceps. “I don’t know how you’re still together with Donghyuck. He  _ loves  _ the muscle and you’re definitely not.” 

“Mark is perfect. Stop teasing him. Only I am allowed to make fun of him.” Donghyuck came to his defense. Mark felt a fleeting kiss on his cheek, one that was emphasized by a big  _ ‘smooch.’  _ “His abs are  _ amazing _ .” 

He heard a series of fake retching and vomiting, but Mark paid it no mind. Instead, he caught Donghyuck’s honey eyes in between the mess of limbs wrapped all around him. His heart was threatening to burst out from his chest when he saw that Donghyuck was already staring right back. 

He smiled, wide, and his heart skipped when Donghyuck matched his smile, a silent message passing between the two of them. 

“You lovebirds are so disgusting.” Renjun continued to retch, hastily hopping off his back along with the two other boys, leaving only Donghyuck in his arms. “Everyone move, I’m going to barf.” 

“Oh, shut it, Huang. You’re just bitter because you haven’t been dicked down by a good dick in a while.” Donghyuck’s words made his cheeks  _ burn.  _

Jeno and Jaemin were literally rolling on the grass, clutching their stomach, laughing extra hard. Mark swore that he saw Jaemin wipe away some tears from his eyes. 

Completely immune to Donghyuck’s unfiltered mouth, Renjun rolled his eyes. “Like you’re the one to talk. You haven’t gotten Mark’s dick in a hot minute either, that’s why you’re always so grumpy whenever I call.” 

“That’s so not true!” Donghyuck stuttered out, eyes wide and cheeks as equally red as his own. But the blush was quick to disappear though as Donghyuck fired back, “I’ll let you know I had it real  _ good  _ before we came to pick you up.” 

Rushing forward to cover Donghyuck’s loudmouth, he hissed, “You did not need to share that.” 

Unfazed, Donghyuck licked his palm, eyes sparkling dangerously, “No, but I like to rub it in Renjun’s face about how nonexistent his sex life is.” 

“You’re unbelievable,” Mark told him. Wincing at his saliva slickened hand, he moved to wipe it down on the front of Donghyuck’s shirt. “Also, that was disgusting.” 

“What?” Donghyuck laughed. “Oh, babe, you know that you like it  _ wet. _ ” 

Mark screamed in protest and disgust along with the others, absolutely scarred by Donghyuck’s words, even though Donghyuck had said much filthier things during sex. He simply preferred to hear those things in private, and not in the middle of a campus lawn surrounded by their best friends. What happened in the bedroom, needed to stay in the bedroom. 

Renjun immediately started to run away, covering his ears and yelling the lyrics of some current pop song to erase what Donghyuck had just said. Jeno and Jaemin weren’t that far behind either as they scrambled away to their original spot on the campus’s lawn. 

His ears were practically on fire as he mumbled, “Donghyuck, please shut up…” 

“What? I’m only speaking the truth,” Donghyuck sang out, a shit-eating grin on his lips, right before he cupped him right through his pants. “Right,  _ babe?” _

Lee Donghyuck was going to be the death of him.

.

“That’s not Jisung’s favorite, what the hell are you talking about?” Jaemin yelled at him, raising his voice over everybody else, once again effectively making a bunch of heads turn around to look at them. They seemed to catch the attention of everyone around them, no matter where they went. 

“No, he definitely likes the one with the jelly in it.” Mark argued, staring hard at the menu, looking through all the drinks. Then swiping through the notes he had in his phone, he said, “I’m like ninety-nine percent sure. I have his order written down somewhere.” 

“Mark,” Jaemin began, sounding extremely exasperated. Throwing him a pointed look, he waved his hand up at the menu dismissively, “Jisung is literally my  _ child. _ I think I would know what he likes.” 

“Jisung is everyone’s child,” Donghyuck drawled out. “You’re not the only one that knows him well.” 

“Obviously, but I know him the  _ best. _ ” Jaemin continued to say smugly. 

Mark watched as the two boys stared each other down, practically at each other’s neck with how close they were standing to one another. Of course, he could always count on Donghyuck to pick a fight with someone, no matter who it was or where they were at. 

“Babe, order what you have written down,” Donghyuck told him, eyes never leaving Jaemin’s. “We’ll see who’s right when we see  _ our baby _ .” 

He heard Jaemin audibly gasp before he launched into a whole essay about how Jisung was  _ his  _ baby. Ignoring all the commotion that they were stirring up, Mark turned and faced the poor boba worker, mumbling an embarrassed apology before finally placing their order. But deep down though, Mark kind of hoped that he was right, so that he could wipe the smug smile Jaemin had off his lips. 

Mark was honestly never that petty or even competitive, but he guessed that after spending so much time around Donghyuck, Donghyuck’s personality started to rub off on him. It seemed like Donghyuck felt this too because he mouthed him a couple of words of encouragement and a thumbs up when he ordered Jisung’s drink. 

Yeah, he was so  _ ready  _ to wipe that smirk off of Jaemin’s face. Jisung was his  _ baby  _ too. 

.

“I can’t believe that you have Jisung’s location,” Renjun commented as they all looked at Jaemin’s phone, watching the blue dot get closer and closer to where they were. “That’s like tiger-parenting on fucking steroids.” 

“I told you guys that Jisung is my baby, didn’t I?” Jaemin sang out, smiling like he just found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. “I got to know where my baby is at  _ all _ times.” 

“So, do you have Jeno’s shared location too?” Renjun looked over at the boy in question, who simply smiled back in response. “Oh, my gosh. You’re literally insane, Jaemin.” 

“Hey, when a murder has you kidnapped, don’t wonder why no one is coming to rescue you. It’s because you refused to share your location with me.” 

“I don’t need your ass to come and save me, I’ll knock that asshole out myself.” 

“With what?” Donghyuck wheezed from the passenger seat. “Your noodle arms aren't going to help.” 

Before Renjun could throw himself onto Donghyuck and fight him, Jaemin shouted out, “It’s our baby!” 

Mark followed Jaemin’s finger and caught sight of Jisung’s towering frame amongst the other students walking with Chenle right beside him.  _ Perfect. _

Pulling down the back window, he motioned for Jaemin to scream at the two boys. “My baby, Park Jisung, Nana is here for you!” 

They all laughed at the way Jisung jumped and hid behind Chenle’s smaller frame, scared out of his own shoes. No matter how much Jisung had grown, he was still such a baby. Jisung was  _ their  _ baby after all. 

_ Once a baby, always a baby, _ Mark thought fondly. 

Chenle found them first and he let out an ear-piercing scream upon seeing them, further scaring Jisung and the rest of the student body within a five mile radius of him. Chenle shook Jisung off of his back and began to run towards the car, grinning wide as he yanked the back door open. As he hopped in, Chenle reached forward to pinch his cheeks, saying, “Mark, you’re so cute!” 

Swatting Chenle’s hands away, Mark grumbled out, “What is up with you guys and pinching me today? My cheeks are going to be permanently red at this point.” 

“You’re just so loveable, that’s all,” Donghyuck told him, making a move to pinch his cheeks too, but Mark dodged it at the last second. His cheeks had been assaulted more than enough today. He wasn’t going to let Donghyuck pinch him again, even if Donghyuck tried to pull the boyfriend privileges card on him.

When Jisung finally moved from his spot, frozen in the middle of the walkway, and entered into the car, Jaemin immediately latched onto the boy, showering him with a bunch of smooches and kisses. “My baby!”

“You’re so gross, stop it.” Jisung tried to pry himself out from Jaemin’s clutches, but it was futile. Seeing this, Jeno gave up his seat and headed towards the back to sit with Renjun and Chenle. 

Satisfied, Jaemin pushed Jisung into the now open seat next to him. Then Mark watched as he reached for the boba drinks that he had bought for them earlier. 

Thrusting the drink that he had ordered for Jisung into the boy’s hand, Jaemin asked, “Now, tell us, is this your usual drink order.” Rolling his eyes, he added on, “I told them that it wasn’t but Mark was hell bent that it was. Now tell them who’s wrong, baby.” 

They all waited with bated breaths as Jisung took a closer look at his drink. Jisung shook the drink a couple of times, watching as the jelly in the drink floated around. Taking a sip of it, he smiled in awe at him, “Mark, you remembered?” 

A huge weight was instantly lifted off of his shoulders while Donghyuck started to celebrate next to him, shouting and hollering at Jaemin who was now sulking in his seat. Mark smiled back at Jisung as he ruffled the boy’s hair. “Of course, why wouldn’t I?” 

.

Mark should have known that a pit stop at Target was going to be a bad idea, a  _ very  _ bad idea. 

They were in the middle of the freezer section, looking at pints of ice cream and it was absolute chaos. 

"Butter pecan is the best, no questions needed," Renjun commented as he reached for the handle of the ice cream section. 

As he reached for his desired pint of ice cream though, Donghyuck quickly swooped in and knocked him out of the way. "No, everybody knows that dulce de leche is the best." Asking for some backup, Donghyuck turned towards him with a raised eyebrow, "Isn't that right, Mark?" 

Dulce de leche? The best? Debatable, especially when salted caramel existed, but Mark knew better than to voice that out loud. Keeping quiet, Mark merely nodded. He learned very early on that if you wanted to live to see another day, it was best if he simply went along with whatever it was that Donghyuck wanted. 

"Yeah, it's pretty good," he said after Donghyuck continued to stare him down, prying an answer out of him. 

"See!" Donghyuck exclaimed, hands reaching straight for his favorite ice cream flavor. "Mark agrees with me." 

"His opinion doesn't count." Renjun argued. "Especially when you two are sucking each other's dicks. Opinions of couples don't count around here." 

Mark rolled his eyes. He really didn't understand why there was so much dick talking when it came to Donghyuck and Renjun. There are literally a thousand other things, much more interesting things that they could talk about that didn't revolve around dicks. 

“Well, I think that strawberry cheesecake is the best," Jeno said, breaking the argument that was happening between the two boys. 

Gasping, Jaemin stared at Jeno like he had grown another head. " _ Strawberry? _ That's absolutely revolting. Why would you like that nasty fruit?" 

"What?" Jeno shrugged. "You may not like it, but I do." 

"We can not be together anymore," Jaemin stated, acting extremely over the top. "I can't be associated with a man that likes strawberries."

"I'm going to eat strawberry flavored ice cream if I want to, Nana." Jeno stuck out his tongue at him before reaching into the freezer for his ice cream. 

From a couple of aisles over, Chenle shouted out, “Green tea is superior. You guys just don’t have taste buds!” 

Unable to stand it any longer, Mark sighed. "Why are you guys even arguing over which ice cream flavor is better? Just grab the one that you like and let's go." Turning on his heels, he started to walk in the direction that he last heard Chenle's shrill voice. "It's not like you guys are paying anyways." 

"Oh, you're paying?" Donghyuck shouted. "Well, damn, I'm getting all four flavors then!" 

As he walked away, he could hear the amount of ice cream that the rest of the boys were piling into the cart. He sighed yet again, this was going to be a huge dent in his bank account, but at least it was buy one get one free. Any discount was better than none, especially for a broke ass college student like him. 

Not surprisingly, he found Chenle and Jisung in the candy aisle, who were also arguing over which candy was the best even though their tiny baskets were already filled to the brim of all sorts of sweets.

"What is up with you guys today?" Mark chuckled, shaking his head as he walked closer. Plucking the kit kat out from Chenle’s hand, he threw it into the basket. "You guys are just looking for a fight I swear. Do you guys have too much bent up anger or what?" 

"If I don't have a smack down with you guys, then who else am I going to have it with?" Jisung asked him. "I would have my ass whooped if I tried to do this with anyone else." 

"Who says that we wouldn't?" Mark teased, crossing his arms in front of him. 

"Because I'm the baby. You guys wouldn't fight me even if your life depended on it." Jisung replied with a big, knowing smile on his face. "I am precious." 

Mark feigned a glare at Jisung for a second longer before he tugged him into his arms. Messing up his hair, Mark hugged him extra tight. "Yes, our precious baby, we could never hurt you. You must be protected at all costs!" 

"Oh, my gosh. Stop it! You're embarrassing me!" 

Jisung tried to squirm out of his hold but Mark wasn't having any of that. Leaning in to smooch him on the cheeks, he said, "Nope, you're the baby, so you're going to get all the love today." 

"Love fest for Jisung and I wasn't invited?" Jaemin gasped, sounding mildly offended. "How rude."

As Jaemin joined in on the fun, Jisung tried to leave again before it would turn into a group hug, but he was too slow. “No, I don’t want your hugs!”

“Well, that sucks, because you’re getting them anyways.” 

Mark laughed at the sight of the frown that was plastered on his face as the other boys jumped in, taking turns smothering Jisung to death with their hugs.

.

“I literally just spent forty dollars on ice cream at Target.” Mark grumbled. “Why the hell are we in the McDonald’s drive thru for ice cream? Also, their ice cream machine never works. This is a waste of time.” 

“Expensive pint ice cream is nothing compared to McDonald’s vanilla ice cream, okay?” Donghyuck pointed out. Kissing his fingers like a five-star chef, he went on to explain, “It’s on a whole other level of smooth and creaminess. Actual heaven in your mouth.” 

“Highly doubt it, but whatever.” 

“If you hate it so much, then get out of line. You’re the one that’s driving.” 

Mark sighed, pulling the car up a little further in the line. “We already ordered. I’m not going to be that mean and leave.” 

“Exactly, so quit complaining.” 

He listened to the snickers and muffled laughs that erupted from the backseat. Of course they would find it funny. Not only was he paying for their meal, yet again, he was getting roasted by his oh, so lovely boyfriend. 

When he finally reached the pay window, Mark handed the cashier his card, wincing internally when she swiped it. In a matter of seconds, his recent paycheck vanished. Keeping six boys fed, happy, and occupied was hard. But the cheers and smiles that they had when they got their nuggets and ice cream was totally worth it.

.

Mark felt so warm, incredibly warm. He honestly hadn't felt like this in such a long time. 

It started in his chest, in his heart precisely, then it was flowing through his veins. He could even feel the warmth in his toes even though he had taken his shoes and socks off a long time ago. He dug his toes deeper into the warm sand, feeling the tickling sensation as each grain slipped over them. 

He opened his eyes and looked down at the fluff of brown hair on his chest. Mark couldn't help but smile at the sight of Donghyuck, there in his arms. He ran a hand through Donghyuck's curls, chuckling when his fingers got tangled up in some parts, a result of the salty waters that they had taken a dip in earlier. 

Looking over to his right, he smiled even wider at Jeno who had a blissed-out Jaemin in his lap and Renjun resting on his shoulder. Not far from where they were laying, Chenle and Jisung were attempting to build a sandcastle, but it didn't seem like they were doing a good job, because it was just a mound of wet sand more than anything. But that was what kind of expected when you had someone like Jisung helping you. 

“You know, not to get all emotional and mushy,” Renjun began to say, breaking the peaceful silence between them, “but I kind of missed you guys.” 

“Just admit it, you missed us like crazy,” Donghyuck spoke out. 

Taking a bite out of his red twizzler, Renjun rolled his eyes and sighed. “Fine, yes, I missed you guys  _ a lot _ .” 

“I missed you too, loser.” 

“It’s like living life without your right hand or something.” Waving the twizzler in his hand around, he continued to explain. “I’ve spent literally most of my life here in Korea with you guys, since the very beginning. It’s weird not having you around. Like yeah, I’ve made new friends in uni, but it’s really not the same…” 

Mark knew exactly what Renjun was talking about. 

“I’ve always wondered how the hell did we get so far away from each other,” Donghyuck mumbled into his chest, almost as if he was afraid to say those words out loud. Shaking his head, Donghyuck clutched onto the front of his shirt, his hands resting right above his heart. “I swear we were all good and chill. We knew that we were going to be scattered across the country for college, but distance has never been a problem for us before. Mark literally went back to fucking  _ Canada,  _ halfway through high school for like a year, before he came back again. That didn’t make us distant. If anything it pulled us closer than ever.” 

“Life is just weird like that, I guess...” Jeno added. “And it gets more complicated as we get older too. Back in high school, the only thing we had to worry about was coming to class every day. There was little that we had to worry about. Now, it’s  _ totally _ different.” 

“Yeah.” His throat was dry and he felt like there was sand in his mouth— which was totally possible from all the sand that had been in Donghyuck’s hair. Licking his lips, he said, “Like day by day, it doesn’t seem all that much different. But when you really look back, I realized that I haven’t talked to any of you, much less met up with you in like probably a year.”

“Crazy, isn’t it?” Donghyuck laughed. “I used to see your guys’ ugly ass faces every day, for hours on end.” 

“Yeah, it is pretty crazy.” Jeno agreed, the rest of them humming along. 

They laid there like that for a little while, saying nothing, except for basking in the comfort that came with being near one another. It was nice and it was something that was long overdue for all of them. There were moments like these that they didn’t need to say anything else to know that they were all happy to be here with one another. 

These were the people that he loved and they were his favorite. Donghyuck might be a little bit higher on the list than the rest, but no one needed to know that. Well, maybe Donghyuck, because Donghyuck liked having his ego a little inflated from time to time.

He tugged Donghyuck further up his chest until he could press a soft kiss on top of his head. He covered Donghyuck’s hand with his own and squeezed it once. Mark got one back in return right afterward, making his heart flutter at the gesture. 

“You grandpas getting teary eyes and emotional over here?” Chenle asked as he and Jisung flopped down in the empty space beside him. “Without us? You guys are mean.” 

“We’ve been here the entire time, talking, but you two were too busy playing with the sand.” Renjun piped up. “Your fault for missing out on the heart to heart talk.” 

“Well, we’re here now, so continue on.” 

“Too late, mushy hours are over.” 

Mark smiled as he listened to the sound of his friends bickering with one another once again, breaking the silence that had been hovering over them. Chenle and Renjun were arguing over the last pack of twizzlers and Donghyuck was egging them on from the sideline. 

Dragging his eyes away from the fight, he looked up at the sky and Mark couldn’t help but think about how lucky he was. For being separated in different cities like they were and not being in touch with one another for so long, Mark feared that this spontaneous reunion would be awkward. He was a fool to think that it would be because they've been friends for so long now. There was absolutely no reason to even feel awkward around each other. He saw these boys at their highs and at their lows. 

He had been there for them even when they didn’t want anyone to see them, not even their parents. Mark lost count of the number of times that they’ve called on him, sometimes in the dead of night, to come pick them up after being completely trashed at some random party. Too afraid to call home, he was always the one that would pick them up and let them sleep over at his house because his parents always worked the night shift. No matter how many times they’ve thrown up all over his comforter, he continued to pick them up each and every time they called. 

Mark didn’t mind it though. He was glad that he could be someone that they could depend on. He could only wish that he would have done a better job in the past year. He wondered how many times they got drunk at college parties without a guaranteed ride home. It was stupid of him to think that he could possibly drive half way across the country to take any of them home late at night, but the guilt still gnawed away at his heart. 

His voice was barely audible when he finally spoke up again. “I know that I haven’t been there for you guys like I used to be…,” he licked his lips, trying to keep the burn behind his eyes at bay, “but I hope you guys remember that no matter how far apart we are, I will always be with you.” 

From that point on, Mark made a promise. He made a promise to himself, to the boys, and to God, that he would try a little harder from now on, because these people were precious to him. He doesn’t want to part from them again, ever. It hurt like hell the first time, so he didn’t want to feel it again for a second time. Honestly, Mark wasn’t sure if he would be able to manage the pain again. 

“You too, Mark. Just because you’re older doesn’t mean that you don’t need someone looking after you too.” Jeno nudged him with his shoulder. “If you ever need a shoulder to lean on, know that you have six perfectly good shoulders waiting for you to use.” 

“Yeah, don’t keep everything to yourself. We’re best friends— actually, no, we’re a family. Don’t you forget that.” Jisung added on, reaching forward to hold his hand. 

“Don’t ever feel like it’s just you against the world.” Donghyuck lifted his head off his chest to look him in the eyes. The intensity of how vibrant his amber eyes nearly knocked him away, but it added to the comforting fire within his chest. “You’re never alone either, Mark. Remember it’s us against the world, not just you.” 

Mark liked the sound of that. 

_ Us against the world.  _  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Well, I hope that you enjoyed this! I hoped it made you smile or laugh a little, because it definitely made me smile for sure~
> 
> Times are hard right now. So remember to reach out to your friends and family. Check in on them from time to time. They may not voice it but they'll appreciate it more than you even know. Don't let these amazing people in your life slip away. They are precious.
> 
> Stay safe. Stay healthy. Stay happy~
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/markeuhyuckie/status/1239041276454076417?s=20) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/markeuhyuckie)


End file.
